A New Life
by snowwhitefire
Summary: A muggle is found tied in the forest by Harry Potter. When she wakes up she has no memory. Was she working with Voldemort? Why can she use a sword? Why are people out to kill her?
1. Default Chapter

My breath was beginning to come quickly as I darted through the forest. I wonder how much longer I can keep this up? I mean, I know I could probably run for a long time, but how long before they caught me? How long before I tripped?

Ugh! I almost screamed in exasperation as one of my shoes went flying of my feet. No, not good! Not good! I almost bent down to pick it up, but then had another idea.

I tensed up and gauged how far away from me THEY were. I listened as THEY crashed through the undergrowth, not even attempting to be discreet anymore. I quickly scaled the tree nearest to me, holding the shoe in my teeth. I could practically feel the adrenaline rushing through my veins. I completely disregarded the way my hands were now bleeding freely.

Once I was at the top, I took the shoe and chucked it as far away from myself as I could. I once again listened and practically sighed in relief as I could hear THEM stop. I could imagine THEM changing their course and heading for the direction where they had heard my shoe fall.

I audibly exhaled when I heard them crashing through the trees once again, but this time away from me. I began climbing down again and easily swung of one of the lowest branches. I then began to run again.

It would confuse THEM for about ten minutes before THEY came toward me again I reasoned with myself. I could only hope it would be enough for me to get far enough away. But the question was, where could I go? No matter where I went THEY would find me. If not today then tomorrow. I briefly considered going to a police station before chuckling quietly. It took all my self restraint not to burst out laughing. That was what had lead me to where I was right now. I could try to get out of this forest and to civilization. I shook my head. No, even if I did manage to call for help, anyone who helped me would only be killed. No- I would not be responsible for more deaths. No- don't think about that!

In an effort to forget that train of thought I put on an extra burst of speed. No, I thought to myself, think about something else. How about a trivial question like, where the heck am I? I had been in this forest for about a week trying to get them of my tail. Now, of course I was completely lost. This was the story of my life.

I was really starting to feel the effects of not having one shoe. I groaned to myself as I stepped on yet another thorn. No, there was no way I would stop now. To do so would certainly mean death. I couldn't allow myself to die, not after all I had been through. I gritted my teeth and continued on. No, I would not give in. After all, that was what THEY wanted.

Suddenly I noticed there was something different. It was quieter. Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no. THEY knew what I had done. THEY knew where I was. THEY could be anywhere.

I knew THEM well. THEY would be loud when chasing me, but THEY were only quiet when they had the upper hand.

I unconsciously put my hands on the hilt of my sword. I grimaced when I heard a twig crack. I completely stopped. I closed my eyes. I knew better than to think that because I couldn't see them THEY weren't there.

I was listening for any sound when I heard one that I was dreading. A bow was being pulled back, most likely aimed for my heart. I knew better than to think THEY would miss. I quickly stepped to the side in time to see an arrow imbedded in the tree behind me.

I willed my breath to stop coming in such short erratic spurts. I needed to calm down if I had any hope of surviving this. I took a deep breath and shouted, "Come out and face me, you cowards!"

Before I knew it I heard another bow being pulled back. I thought to myself, so this is how it will be.

I never imagined myself dying from a bow and arrow. I mean, I remember when I used to imagine myself dying peacefully in my sleep with my loved ones around me. Well, looks like that wasn't going to happen. I couldn't help adding. I felt the tears sting my eyes. I know THEY have me surrounded. I mean, the last thing THEY are is stupid.

I snapped my eyes open in surprise when the arrow went through my arm. I couldn't help but let out a small yelp. The pain was horrible, but not overwhelming. After I was conscience of what was going on around me, again I realized the THEY had not killed me. That in itself was odd. They could have easily put an arrow through my heart; I could not compete with an unseen menace.

I felt myself falter as the pain began to get to me. I backed up a few steps and leaned against a tree, breathing heavily. However, I was proud of myself. After that first yelp I had not given them the satisfaction of making a noise.

I snapped my head up and I saw THEM walking towards me. I was right, they had me surrounded. A ring of THEM formed around the tree. This was my worst nightmare. I resisted the urge to scream. I knew I could not let THEM see my fear, however real it may be. Instead I fixed who appeared to be their leader with a steely cold glare.

He walked up toward me and I drew my sword with my left arm, my right arm hung limply from my side.

He chuckled and exclaimed, "You still fight, girl? You are going to lose. You are

going to die. Alone, where no one will know where you are. No one will remember you. Yet you still fight. It will make your pain worse."

I only continued to glare at him and got in to a fighting stance the best I could with an arrow sticking out of one arm. He sighed and seemed to motion someone with one arm. He then said as though amused, "Fine, have it your way."

Of course he would choose the least honorable way to fight. He wasn't even going to fight me. He was probably to high a rank to fight me. Wouldn't want him to get a scratch, now would we? I turned to face my opponent. He cockily swung at me but I sidestepped easily. I brought my blade up his back only a little uncomfortable at having ended someone's life. I swung around and parried another's attack. I quickly sliced his neck. It soon became the all too familiar dance of side steps, parries and blows.

However, before I knew it I was grabbed from behind and slammed against the tree that I had earlier used for balance. A thick rope was wrapped around my wrists as my arms were yanked back. I winced as my hurt arm was moved. I attempted to struggle against my bonds but quickly realized they would not budge.

Was it just me, or were there supposed to be these black dots swimming before my eyes? I quickly shook myself out of it, but when I tried to talk, found my mouth difficult to move.

I heard his voice say, "The poison must be taking effect. Now you will get to die out in the forest with no memories! I would love to watch you suffer, but unfortunately I have things I must get back to doing."

I could barely keep my eyes open. I heard them leave silently through the undergrowth, not leaving a trail to be recognized. My sluggish mind eventually realized what he meant when had said poisoned. The arrow. It must have had some sort of knockout drug on it. It was getting harder and harder to think. There was no way it was sage to loose consciousness now, though. THEY might come back. And who knew what else wandered in these woods. I shuddered at the thought of a wild animal coming to find me unconscious. Then again, I reasoned with myself, what could I really do? Even if I could fight of these black spots that kept appearing in my vision, could I defend myself against anything? I knew the answer. No, I could not. Not with my hands tied like they were. I looked around to see my swords lying a few feet away. At this point even blinking was difficult. I wanted so badly to close my eyes and keep them closed.

I struggled ever harder against the drug. Then something occurred to me. He had not only said that I would be left in the forest, he had said I would have no memories. This can't be good. I tried to struggle against my bonds again.

Eventually I settled for focusing on staying conscious. I focused on anything and everything. Even thinking about the pain wrenching my arm was a welcome change. Whatever I did, I could not lose consciousness. That would mean certain death. I must have stayed like that for a half an hour.

I knew I could not hold out for much longer. However, something was brought to my attention. It sounded as though some one was coming through the forest. I immediately tensed up as my thoughts returned to THEM. THEY were coming back, though what they could do to hurt me more I did not know. THEY had already left me to a slow and painful death, what more could THEY do than hurry it up a little.

However, it did not sound like one of THEM. THEY never made this much noise. In fact THEY never left a trail at all, unless if THEY were hurrying. Why one of them would be hurrying to me made no sense. It was not like I was going anywhere.

It hit me like a ton of bricks. It was not one of THEM. I tried to open my mouth to shout for help, but to my dismay I could not move any longer. The drug was taking effect. However I realized he was coming in my direction. I caught a glimpse of a boy about my age with dark, unruly hair and green eyes. He saw me about a minute after I saw him. I saw his eyes widen with shock and I noticed he had an odd scar on his forehead- almost in the shape of a lightning bolt.

This time when I blinked I did not open my eyes.


	2. Waking Up

The first thought to cross my mind is that I am very comfortable right now. In fact I don't feel like moving. You know what? I don't think I will move. I inwardly smiled and tried to roll over on my side.

That was funny; I was having problems doing that. What was wrong with me? I frowned and tried a little harder to roll over. That is when I noticed that my wrist was where all the pressure lay. I couldn't move my wrist. I wonder why? Ugh. I should probably figure out why I can't move it.

I lazily opened one eye in to a slit. What I saw made my eyes immediately shoot open. My wrist appeared to be chained down to the bed. I frantically tried to break free, but the only thing that this succeeded in doing was to make me aware that my other wrist, ankles, and stomach was also attached to the bed.

"Do you like the chains? We figured you are such a powerful wizard that you could just break through whatever magical bonds we placed on you. I thought they were a nice touch."

Upon hearing this I lifted my head the best I could and saw an old man sitting on a chair at the foot of my "bed." He appeared to be wearing what looked like an oversized bathrobe. It had little silver moons of it. I probably would have laughed if the situation was not so scary.

However, I did not have a clue what he had been talking about. Wizard? Magical bonds? Ugh… just my luck. Get captured by someone who believes I am a wizard and wears oversized bathrobes.

I realized he expected me to say something. What was I supposed to say? You captured me. Would you like a cookie? Instead I stuttered out, "Where am I?" It was then I realized just how freaked out I was. I had no idea where I was, or why I was chained to a bed.

He replied in a cool voice, "It is not important where you are, but who you are."

At this point I was freaking out. "I am just a normal teenager! What is wrong with you?"

"Then how did you end up in our forest?"

"What forest?" I was practically hysterical. "What do you mean?"

"You WILL cooperate child. Who sent you?"

It was then that my sarcastic side began to kick in. "Oh yeah, I am sure someone sent me to be held hostage by people wearing pajamas. And yeah, if you don't let me go I will… use my mad magical powers on you! Fear me!" I rolled my eyes.

However, apparently this guy did not understand sarcasm. He was up on his feet holding out what looked like a stick at me. He met my eyes with a gaze that held so much power in them that I had to look away. Man and I thought I could give some one a death glare.

He replied in a clear, steely tone, "You know what your fate is, don't you. You will be sent to Azkaban. However, seeing as Azkaban is currently under your Lord's control you would break free in an instant. So, I will be keeping you here for the time being. Let me assure you, though. There will be no escaping. I myself have casts the spells that protect this ancient castle. Your Lord can not reach you here."

At his steely tone I suddenly broke down, "I have no idea what you are talking about! I don't know where Azkaban is and I don't have a lord! I just want to leave!"

He replied level headedly, "If you are not willing to confess, spy, then I will force the confession from you." He got up, and swept from the room.

I blankly stared around. He had called me a spy. Why? I tried to think back to what I could last remember. I was startled when I realized that I could not remember anything at all. What was wrong with me? Had I hurt my head? I started breathing heavily. I had no idea what was going on.

OK, calm down I told myself, attempting to keep a level head. It was as though from somewhere instincts were kicking in. Great, so the only thing I knew about myself was that I could keep a level head in a bad situation.

Start with the basics. So, who is your family? I wracked my head for the information. I had to have a mother, a father. Why could I not remember them? I mentally tried to figure out what I could based on my body. I looked like I was about 17. I had long brown hair that went to my lower back. I looked as thought I was fairly strong, in a kind of wiry way. I could not remember what color eyes I had. Frustrated that I could not figure out something as simple as what color my eyes were I tried to focus in on something else. What else is important?

My name. What was my name? I don't know, maybe I don't have one. However the logical side of me kicked in before I could continue thinking like that much more. I had to have a name. Whatever, I had to tell that weird old guy something. Arya. That is what I would call myself. For some reason I had a strong draw toward that name. It felt right.

As I was beginning to feel proud of myself for that small accomplishment I heard the door open and close.

However, this time the old man was accompanied by someone else. He was also wearing and oversized bathrobe, but it was black. He had greasy black hair that looked as though he had not washed it in a week. His nose was so large that it looked as though it took up his face. As opposed to the old man who's very presence seemed to demand respect this new man was almost comical. He held himself with an arrogance that was only present in those who liked to condescend others.

The old man said in a quiet voice, "You leave us no other choice. If you confess now this will not be necessary."

I looked up wearily. What would not be necessary? I doubted that even if they attempted to beat me up they could. I sighed, "I don't know what you speak of."

The old man looked at the younger man and nodded.

The young man took out another stick and muttered something that sounded like "legilimens".

All of a sudden the pain hit me. It felt as though my entire mind was exposed to him. Like he could read me like a book. I felt as though he was taking away everything that made me who I am. I felt tears leaking out of my eyes. One scene kept repeating over and over in my mind. It was the old guy speaking to me and then me lying on the bed thinking. I could see every minute expression I had made over and over. When I decided on my name, when I was frustrated because I couldn't tell my eye color. He kept playing the same scene as though he expected there to be something more.

As suddenly as he came, he was gone. I no longer felt his mind probe at mine. I wished at that moment more than I ever had before that the bonds were gone so I could curl up in to a ball. I felt violated.

I realized the jerk who had hurt me was talking to the old guy. He was saying, "I could only see one scene over and over. She is powerful. Few could block me out so completely. She was only showing her memory of since she woke up. It is as though that was the only thing that her mind could acknowledge, that was her only memory. If I didn't know better I would say it is. But she is a skilled actor. Look at her pretending it is the first time any one has ever looked in to her memories." He practically sneered this last sentence.

The old man looked at me with a new look of wariness in his eyes. I have no idea what is going on! I tried to scream this over and over in my mind, but evidently he didn't pick up on the message.

The old man seemed almost as though for some reason he was disappointed in me. Why? I have no idea. He responded to the younger man by saying, "I suppose we will use more traditional methods, then. Bring me the veritaserum." He turned to me and said, "We are bringing you something to drink. You must drink it all."

No way was I drinking whatever was brought to me! You don't just drink whatever your captor tells you to! Especially when it has a funky name like veritaserum.

I prepared myself by sealing my lips when the younger picked up a cup. However, instead of trying to force me to drink it he picked up his stick and muttered what sounded like, "Wingardium Leviosa." My mouth dropped open in surprise when the liquid flew toward me at an alarming rate.

Before it could reach me, the old guy muttered, "She can probably do some magic without a wand. Why else would she not have a wand in our forest? Be wary."

I did not even have time to think about what he said before the liquid flew down my throat. Surprised I started coughing. The instant my coughing ceased the old man started pacing the length of the room.

He lifted his head and asked me, "What is your name?"

Planning on saying something along the lines of "Let me go" or "Why are you keeping me here" or "Bite me" I opened my mouth. However, for some reason I instead said, "My name is Arya." What had happened? I definitely did not mean to say that! It must have been something weird in that drink. I racked my brain. I had heard of poison, but never of one that made you tell the truth. Whatever, I would think about it later.

"Are you in league with Voldemort?" He looked at me as though he was waiting for me to flinch.

"No."

"Are you working with Voldemort?" He looked at me as though he had not believed me the first time.  
"No."

This looked at though it shocked him. He did not seem the type to be rendered speechless, yet here he was staring at me as though I had suddenly grown another eye.

"Why were you in our forest?"

"I don't know."

"Where do you come from?"

"I don't know."

I heard another voice interject in our little 'discussion'. The young man stated, "Maybe she knows a way to block veritaserum. She has proved to have astounding powers so far."

The old man replied by saying, "I do not think so. If she was lying she would have given me a story. She would not be stupid enough to say she does not know where she comes from. No, I do not believe she is lying." He turned back to me and asked, "How did you come to be bound to a tree with an arrow through an arm?"

At this I reeled. I couldn't remember my past, but that was crazy. I did not feel as though I had had an arrow in my arm. I had so many questions to ask the old man, but all I could say was, "I don't know."

At this he looked puzzled. He asked, "Why did you not have a wand?"

"What is a wand?" I replied.

When I said this evidently I had shocked him speechless again. Twice in one day, I was good.

He opened his mouth and then closed it again. I could not help thinking that he looked a lot like a fish. However, before he could open his mouth again the younger man stated, "You are a muggle."

I asked him, "What is a muggle?"

"Non magical people."

At this I stated, "There is no such thing as magic."

The old man merely swept out of the room and the young man just followed- after giving me a particularly nasty glare.


	3. Meeting Draco

I must have been lying there, chained to that bed for an hour. I noticed that I seemed to be in a room with white walls and no decorations. All it had was the chair that the old man had been sitting in for a while. Obviously this room was not used that much.

About an hour later I heard a door open and close somewhere in the distance. I could hear what appeared to be people arguing by I couldn't make out what they were saying. The voices got louder until I could finally hear what they were saying. I recognized the voices of the old man and the younger man. There was a third voice that sounded as though it belonged to a woman. So, this would be the first woman I would see in this rattrap.

The woman said, "Can we trust her? She could be in league with you know who."

The old man replied, "We have no way of knowing for sure whose side she is on. However, if she is on Voldemort's side then there is no way for her to escape Hogwarts. I have placed special spells on the castle walls that will prevent her from leaving. If she is not in league with Voldemort than we have condemned an innocent muggle and are just as bad as Voldemort himself."

The younger man said, "But what of magic? She will surely have questions when she sees the ghosts! Let alone the moving pictures or the floating candles? What about the food appearing on plates?"

The older man said, "We will tell her the truth."

The woman gasped and said, "But professor!..."

At this point the older man said, "She can hear every word we are saying. Why don't we just go in now?"

I winced; I didn't know that they knew I could hear them. My door opened and the old man, the young man and an elderly woman with her hair in a tight bun entered the room. The old man immediately came over to my bed and undid the chains. I was surprised into silence when he did this and immediately sat up.

I could now finally see things without having to crane my neck. I asked them, "Are you letting me go?"

The elder man said, "No, I am sorry we can not. We do not know what you affiliation with Voldemort is. It would be folly to let you loose. Though you do not remember him, he might remember you. You will be tracked down. We thought it best to keep you here."

At this I sighed. He must have heard me so in an attempt to ease my discomfort he said, "We were never properly introduced. I know your name, but you do not know mine! I am Professor Dumbledore; this is Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall." As he said this he motioned to the younger man and the woman.

To this I snapped, "Since when are professors allowed to hold someone hostage?"

When he looked at me I was surprised. There was genuine remorse in his eyes. He said, "For this I am sorry. You must understand. The way our student found you…"

At this my curiosity took over and I asked, "How did you find me?"

Dumbledore looked at me wearily. He said, "You were tied to a tree. There was an arrow in your right arm. And there were… there were… two dead bodies around you."

I almost laughed, "There is no way I had an arrow in my arm. Don't you think I would still be a little uncomfortable?" He motioned down to my arm. Rolling my eyes I looked down. However I was shocked to see that there was what looked like a scar on my arm. My eyes widened.

"If there was an arrow in my arm, then why is it healed?"

He sighed. "This is what we need to tell you. This is no ordinary place. It is called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. We do magic here."

I would have laughed at him if I did not already have the feeling that something weird was happening. I mean, some dude with a stick levitated a cup, I was forced to only tell the truth, and they kept referring to magic!

I exhaled calmly and replied, "How?"

At this Dumbledore seemed taken aback. "You are not questioning if we can do magic." He said this as almost a statement.

I responded with, "Nope."

He narrowed his eyes, "You already know about magic." He accused.

I sighed. Was he going to be this quick to accuse me whenever I did something that he didn't like? I responded with, "Yeah, I am good friends with Santa."

Though he was not expecting this answer he chuckled. "Magic is something that people are born with. We call people who were not born with it muggles."

"Like me." I pointed out.

"Yes, like you. We can put this magic to use through our wands. Each person's wand is different, in tune with them. Through saying certain things, we can create magic."

I wondered at this. I felt like I had stepped in to a fairy tale. "Why have I never heard of wizards before?"

"We don't exactly like to broadcast this fact."

I nodded. This was fair enough. People were not all understanding. Dumbledore looked reluctant while talking. I guess he did not like to share this information with "muggles." To change the topic I asked him, "Why were there dead bodies around me?"

He winced at this question. "We do not know. We attempted to asses the situation. We saw one set of tracks lead to the clearing. Then it appeared that there were 3 people there, which confounded us. One set of tracks there, 3 bodies. We assumed that 2 had apparated there." Seeing my confused look, he explained further, "Teleport. We found you with this. It was on the ground a few feet from you, but it seemed to match the case."

He held out a scabbard. I noticed that the scabbard was plain leather. I pulled it out of the scabbard and gasped. It was beautiful. The hilt was a gorgeous combination of red and black while on the blade there were carvings. However, I could not read the language. I picked it up in my hand and it felt right. I intuitively knew that I was very skilled with this weapon, though I had no idea how skilled.

"Arya?"

I heard Dumbledore's voice and realized that I had been staring at the weapon for quite a while.

Dumbledore continued saying, "You will get a new room, one that is a bit more…" he glanced around before saying, "suitable. You must understand. Though this may seem odd to you we have yet to find out whether or not you are in league with Voldemort."

I asked, "Who is Voldemort?"

At this Snape cringed. I had almost forgotten that he and McGonagall were still here. And evidently Snape did not like the word Voldemort.

Dumbledore responded, "You have found yourself in bad times. Voldemort is a dark wizard who is out to kill muggles."

To this I nodded slowly.

Dumbledore looked as though he was going to say something else but just then another boy came in. Dumbledore exclaimed, "Hello, Draco. This is Arya. Will you show her to a guest room near the Gryffindor tower?"

He nodded and said, "Hi, I'm Draco."

I smiled and said, "I am Arya."

He started to walk and I followed him after picking up my sword. We passed through another long chamber with a lot of beds lined up against the walls. It looked bright and merry, but there were no other people in the beds. "Where are we?" I asked.

He regarded me warily after glancing down at my sword multiple times, "We are in the healing wing."

"Why is no one here?"

"We were told that there was someone being held that could not be disturbed."

I laughed, "I guess that is me."

He looked at me slightly strangely as though I was strange to laugh. He said, "So, is this your first time at Hogwarts?"

"This is my first time to ever here of magic!"

After I said this he practically drawled, "You are a muggle?"

"Yep."

He looked at me strangely, "Then what are YOU doing here?"

Annoyed at his tone I said, "Am I not allowed to be here?"

We both stopped walking and faced each other, forgetting that the teachers were still watching.

He said to me, "This place is already contaminated with mudbloods; we don't need muggles here as well."

"If you are what all wizards are like, then I think I am perfectly OK with being a muggle, thank you very much."

He drew out what looked like a short stick, much like the one Dumbledore had out earlier, and started muttering something. However, some instinct of mine kicked in automatically and I dropped to the ground. I saw something flash over my head and heard a crash on the other side of the room.

Not even giving Draco time to recover from what I did, I immediately jumped up and pressed my sword to his throat. He dropped his wand and I kicked it away.

He actually whimpered. Yes, whimpered. However after a few seconds when it was clear I was going to do nothing more his mouth curled into a snarl.

I practically rolled my eyes; he actually had thought I was going to kill him. I would not kill someone!

I then noticed the teachers run up behind me.

Dumbledore said, "You don't have to do this. We will let you leave. Anything. Leave the boy alone. "

I was now confused. He actually thought I was going to kill Draco. I immediately stepped back, placed the sword on the ground and my hands up. I said, "Listen, I am not a murderer. Why would I kill him? He tried to hurt me, and I did not let him. Defense." I tried to make my sentences short just to make sure he got what I was saying.

Snape then snarled, "Then how did you kill those men, if you are not a murderer?"

I realized what he was saying and started breathing faster. He was right, how else would they be dead, if not for me? I must have killed them! I was a murderer!

Before I could completely hyperventilate Dumbledore said, "It is ok Severus. She meant no harm. It was self defense. However, I think I will take her to her rooms, myself. Draco- 20 points will be taken from Slytherin for attacking a muggle."

Draco left after huffing, trying to maintain some dignity. I managed to contain my laughter- but it was very hard. I guess I had a new friend.


End file.
